


An Ascend Into Lunacy

by faithistic



Category: Final Fantasy, Final Fantasy VII Remake (Video Game 2020)
Genre: Avalanche vs the fifty-nine stairs: the fic, Avalanche!Reader, Banter, Cloud Strife Needs a Hug, Cloud Strife being Cloud Strife, F/M, Female Reader, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Humor, Injury, Mutual Pining, Reader Insert, Spoilers For The Remake, Swearing, heavily implied mutual pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-11
Updated: 2020-07-11
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:34:15
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25200982
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/faithistic/pseuds/faithistic
Summary: Really, why didn’t they take the lift? It was all Cloud’s idea, so let’s just place the blame on him... and leave it at that.
Relationships: Cloud Strife & Reader, Cloud Strife/Reader, Cloud Strife/You
Comments: 2
Kudos: 155





	An Ascend Into Lunacy

* * *

“You have _got_ to be shittin’ me.” Barret said, when Cloud led them through the doorway and towards the awaiting flight of stairs. Cloud spun on his heel and crossed his arms, looking nonplussed. (Y/N) would’ve perhaps found this funny if there wasn’t a sinking dread setting in her stomach, glimpsing over at the spiralling stairs.

“Nope. We’re a lot less likely to get caught this way.” Cloud said, and he had a point; taking the elevator would arouse suspicion, and there was no guarantee they’d have a safe passage up. They could run into anyone. The stairs seemed a lot more deserted and solitary.

“But a lot more likely to die of boredom.” Barret grumbled. He passed Cloud’s figure and glanced up, stuttering backwards. (Y/N) followed suit and tilted her own head upwards, staring up into a void of what looked like endless stairs.  _Holy shit,_ she almost said, but she masked her surprise by striding forwards and leaning on the stairs railing.

“I’m more likely to die of  _exhaustion_ then boredom when this is done.” (Y/N) huffed, feeling tired already. She wondered if she should suggest grappling up.

“It’s only fifty-nine floors.” Cloud stated, as if this settled the matter.

“Nothing to it.” Tifa added, her hands resting on her hips — (Y/N) saw a fiery determination sparkling away in her eyes. It could of just been the lighting, though.

“Well, at least it ain’t a race. Small blessing.” Barret said, sounding completely unsure and unwilling and probably wishing he was anywhere else but here right now. (Y/N) could relate. Overall, her stamina was pretty decent, but she was debating on how long this terrible climb was going to be and if she could keep up a dignified pace.

(Y/N) glanced over at Tifa, who was jumping on her toes, practically radiating energy. “I’m not so sure about that, Barret.” She said, wondering why Tifa looked so excited when they were preparing to climb up a monstrous fifty-nine floors.

“Let’s just get this over with.” Cloud said, approaching the first flight of many to come.

And then they were off, jogging up and up, their steps echoing against the cool metal their feet were trampling on. Barret and Tifa were both keen on ascending as fast as they could, but (Y/N) focused more on pacing herself. Cloud seemed to have the same idea, too, a couple of flights ahead of (Y/N).

“Oh for gods sake.” (Y/N) whined, when she had hit the twenty-third floor, “these stairs are going to kill me. Fuck fuck fuck  _fuck—“_

“I HATE STAIRS!” Barret yelled, three flights below where (Y/N) was climbing. Cloud groaned at them to shut up, muttering something about guards hearing them.

“Just keep it up, guys!” Tifa called out from somewhere up above, “think about what its going to be like when we reach the top!”

“More security guards and restrictions. It’s not gonna get any easier.” Cloud replied, ever the mood killer, his voice sounding much closer than Tifa’s. (Y/N) sped up her pace in hope she could catch up to him.

“Think about beating them up with that big sword of yours then.” Joked (Y/N), her legs starting to ache. Her leg-muscles weren’t used to this kind of work. Barret wheezed. Cloud didn’t say anything, and for once (Y/N) wished her legs could move faster so she could’ve caught his expression.

Cloud’s steps were incredibly light for someone carrying a humongous sword lodged onto their back, so when (Y/N) rounded another corner and saw his feet swiftly tackle the next heap of stairs she was caught by surprise. She’d expected him to be stairs and stairs ahead of her. She doubled her efforts, only just managing to take five steps at a time, and gained some decent ground on him. 

“Wait up, Cloud.” (Y/N) said, feeling a bit lightheaded. She’d been managing to keep her pace so far, but now the fatigue was starting to creep in. Cloud had the decency to stop for a full three seconds at the top of the stairs before moving on. “Rude.” (Y/N) huffed, but he let her catch up to him on the next flight.

Barret, who was many flights of stairs below them, starting singing a disheartening song about how much he hated stairs. The lyrics consisted of the same verse of  _“I hate stairs, they make me weak. I hate stairs, they hurt my feet”_ but the tune only rose in octaves the more Cloud told him to shut up.

“Let the man sing.” (Y/N) said to Cloud, who had fallen into place beside her. She counted Cloud’s steps and noticed he was taking three steps at a time to compensate for her own slowing pace. It was a nice gesture for someone like Cloud, and he probably didn’t even realise he was doing it. (Y/N) refrained from pointing it out because she was sure Cloud would stop if he noticed.

Cloud’s shoulders slacked and his pace slowed even more, so (Y/N) slowed her own down. Looking over, she noticed Cloud pressing his hands into his hips, short for breath. So even the stairs were getting to him, it seemed.

He looked deep in thought, and (Y/N) was tempted to engage him in a conversation, but she knew how much the man needed his space. For what it’s worth, she counted herself as quite observant. She’d noticed that Cloud would sometimes press his hand up to his forehead in excessive pain if someone said something in particular. She had to admit that she was curious, but decided to respect Cloud’s privacy. It wasn’t her business. Even if he kept glancing over at her when he thought she wasn’t looking. Wasn’t her business. Right.

(Y/N) took note of the number, realising they were up to flight thirty-nine. So they had twenty more to go. (Y/N) hadn’t seen Tifa since they started, but she was sure she was way ahead of the rest of them.

Then something really spectacular happened. Well, not really. It was for (Y/N) though.

Cloud, who has stated himself multiple times, is a First-Class Ex-SOLDIER, can jump about fifty feet into the air, wipe out an entire team single-handedly, and can dance far too well for someone stating they can’t bust a move. He’s ever-so carefully controlled, both emotionally and physically, and yet his own two feet ended up being the one thing that betrayed him. It was kind of hilarious.

Cloud Strife fucking  _tripped._

(Y/N) caught him by the arm though, so he luckily didn’t smash his face into the hard metal platform below them, but overall he seemed to be okay... wait, no he wasn’t.

(Y/N) noticed it immediately after Cloud brushed her off and yelled up to Tifa that they were fine, and that the loud noise was just the metal platform; his left leg, the one he’d fallen on, was limping. It was barely noticeable, because Cloud practically  had  no pain tolerance  _(of course he didn’t, he was once a SOLIDER)_ but (Y/N) picked up on it after they continued on up the stairs. Bringing it up to him was another thing.

She poked him lightly on the arm, and Cloud hummed shortly in acknowledgment. When she caught his eye she didn’t say anything and simply pointed to his leg. Cloud raised his brow. (Y/N) patted her own shoulder invitingly, granting him permission to lean against her.

Cloud was obviously humiliated of simply tripping over, and (Y/N) wanted to show him that it was a completely human thing to do. He didn’t want the others to know, and so (Y/N) didn’t say anything to hint at what had truely happened. Cloud stared at where she was pointing and shook his head, looking down. It was only when they ventured up a couple more floors did Cloud lean his weight against her, gripping her shoulder to take some of the strain off his leg. He murmured something under his breath (Y/N) didn’t quite catch.

“Are these... these stairs...” Barret panted from somewhere below desperately, “these stairs ever gonna end!?”

“I dunno, Barret!” (Y/N) called down, “ask the stairs!”

Cloud’s weight at (Y/N)’s side became consistently heavier. “I don’t think the stairs are talking.” He grumbled sarcastically. (Y/N) put her arm on his shoulder for more support. She was wary of touching him too much, knowing Cloud didn’t do too well with physical affection. He didn’t do well with any form of affection. He seemed to be alright with the contact (Y/N) was giving him though. His leg was obviously hurting a lot more than he was letting on. “Twisted it. Probably.” Cloud whispered when (Y/N) looked down at his leg again, “have any healing items on you?”

“No, we gave them all to Tifa, remember?” (Y/N) muttered back, panting for breath. “We’ll have to wait till we reach the top. Or hope that we catch her along the way, but she’s way ahead of us.”

_“Great.”_ Said Cloud, and they continued walking.

Barret’s footsteps were becoming louder, so (Y/N) and Cloud sped up their pace while Barret groaned, “worst route ever. Gimme... gimme a suicidal last stand. At least — at least — at least that’d have an end!”

Cloud’s frame went incredibly rigid against (Y/N)’s shoulder in obvious discomfort. (Y/N) didn’t press, but she did give him a reassuring pat on the arm.

“Let’s shut up.” Cloud said quietly.

“Yes, let’s.” Tifa added.

“I wish we could go back... this sucks.” (Y/N) complained, stomping down on a couple of stairs to let everyone know she was frustrated. She had to stop after a few because she was tired. “Get caught or not, the elevator ensured the survival of my legs...”

“Really wanna climb back down  _all those stairs?”_ Cloud said, tilting his head in disbelief.

(Y/N) shook her own head, then guided the pair of them over towards the handrail. “Nope, but I could slide down! Slide into a spiral of madness.”

“Barret’s already spun down that hole.” Cloud said, as Barret started singing again  _(“Another day, another struggle... climbin’ stairs is so much trouble...”)._

“Perhaps these stairs are  supposed to make us insane and tired, so when we reach the... the top, they can ambush us.” (Y/N) suggested tiredly.

Cloud lifted his head up, as if he was worried being overheard. “Guess so. Maybe.”

“What are you so worried about?” (Y/N) asked, bringing Cloud’s attention back to her. She lowered her voice so Cloud would stop looking so tense. “None of us are gonna poke fun at you for just tripping up some stairs.”

Cloud shot her an unimpressed look, so (Y/N) elaborated. “I mean, sure, its funny... but — but we all do it, and it doesn’t make us think any less of you, if that’s what you’re worried about...” (Y/N) said, then quickly adding, “also, you’re gripping my shoulder really tightly.”

Yanking his hand away and muttering an apology, Cloud and (Y/N) ventured further up the stairs. It was only when they reached floor number forty-eight did (Y/N) decide to say, “why’d you trip over in the first place?”

“The steps were uneven.” Was Cloud’s immediate response. He was really starting to look tired now.

(Y/N) grinned, “uh-huh, I’m sure.”

Cloud glimpsed over at (Y/N) — when he saw her grinning at him, his own lip curled upwards into the start of a smile. “They really ought to fix that.”

“I’ll... add it to the list of complaints we have for Shinra.” (Y/N) said. She then raised her voice and mimicked in a very laughable tone, _ “Fix those godamn stairs you forced us to climb, you fiend! My friend tripped up one uneven step, and he’s an Ex-SOLDIER, I tell you! He ain’t gonna let that go!” _

Cloud must’ve been purely exhausted from the many stairs they were climbing, because he definitely wasn’t thinking straight. Honestly, when did  _Cloud Strife_ ever laugh?

(Y/N) glowed, bumping her shoulder against his lightly, “You have a nice laugh.”

His expression shifted back into his carefully blank one, but he couldn’t seem to wipe off the pleasant calmness that had settled over his features. He didn’t say anything, but (Y/N) knew he appreciated the compliment. His face looked a bit red, too, and (Y/N) was sure her own matched. The exhaustion was definitely setting in, then. That was it.

Floor fifty-five and (Y/N) and Cloud were done keeping a pace up. They idled up the stairs, panting for breath while Tifa yelled encouragements down to them. Barret had been lost below for some time now, but he’d gained some ground and was now a few stairs behind Cloud and (Y/N). 

“Haaahh... we — we gotta keep movin’!” Barret yelled, huffing and puffing, “these stairs... ain’t... gonna — gonna take us out! Woo! Woohoo! Yeah!”

“Barret’s... lost it.” (Y/N) said, feeling incredibly numb all over.

“Thought he... already had.” Cloud said, stepping away from (Y/N) to walk a flight or two up by himself, insisting that it was fine now. He changed his mind though at floor fifty-seven and leaned back against (Y/N) again.

“Thought you said you were alright now.” (Y/N) puffed, intending it to be a question, but she couldn’t find the energy to make it seem like one.

Cloud didn’t reply immediately. “I  _am.”_ He mumbled quietly, “just... well...”

He didn’t add or elaborate any further then that, so (Y/N) simply enjoyed his reassuring presence pressing into her side. She expected Cloud to stand upright again once they finally reached the top, but he shockingly didn’t. He leaned against her the whole walk up the final platform and towards Tifa.

When Barret trudged his way up the stairs, none of them had anything worth saying. They all simply bent over gasping, half relieved half exhausted.

“...the end.” Tifa said first.

“Made it.” Barret panted, slouching down even further.

“What comes next is a lot more difficult.” (Y/N) said, feeling her strength returning to her. Right, their mission. They’d climbed all those stairs for a reason, after all.

“Yep.” Cloud said, the first to stand upright again. His expression was carefully neutral now, like what? They’d just climbed fifty-nine floors worth of stairs? Really? Looking at Cloud’s face, you wouldn’t be able to tell.

“Let’s go kick some Shinra ass.” Said (Y/N). Barret perked his head up at that.

And they walked through the next door, prepared to partake in another battle. They didn’t, though, not for a while after that, but when they did, (Y/N) couldn’t shake the strange feeling of being watched...

Cloud’s staring didn’t help, either. Maybe that was it.

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! I wrote this because I like Final Fantasy (also because I just wanted to write something). I remember playing this scene and thinking to myself “oh my god, this will be a _great_ fic idea” and I couldn’t find many good Cloud x reader fics, so... hope you enjoyed! It was fun to write (´ω｀★) 
> 
> You can find me on:  
> Twitter: [faithistic](https://mobile.twitter.com/faithistic)  
> Discord: faith#7991  
>   
> Don’t be shy! <3


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